MC Diesel

a friend sent me this pic, thought some might like to see it.

!!!AWESOME!!!

I think it would be pretty cool to fill the truck and boat with diesel at the gas station. Plus, I could sneak a few gallons on the company fuel card...shhh

Anyone know how these engines perform so far or what models they're available in. Wonder if you could get a diesel in the X-Star yet...?

ahhh ! turbo charged VW muscle. Too bad it only lists the Maristar 280 or prostar 190 ski boats. At least we are getting closer.

Could run farm diesel, i.e. not tax, very nice.

Just a little heads up, the diesel option is WAY WAY expensive. The sticker price for just the engine will be $32,000. They only have it in the 190's and 280's. It is not even worth the money. Lots of torque, around 530lbs.

Wait....what?? 32,000 for the engine?? 3200 hundred sounds about right for the diesel engine option.

Damn though, imagine the hole shots with a sacked out boat.

I was quoted between $22K and $25K for the diesel option from 15 different dealers throughout the nation.

so you saying a $40k boat with this option will cost 62-65k

I find it very hard to believe that MC would sticker a motor marketed to "save gas" for such an extreme price. If you ran that motor all day everyday I still dont think you would ever reach a savings over a straight V8. I guess its possible but still hard to believe.

What do you think diesel particulant (the black smoke) thats common with diesel will do to a lakes water. Is Diesel better for the lake?

Question #2 Does a Diesel like the one in the picture weigh more than a regular V8?

#3 Can you add the Bubb Rubb whistle tip to the exhaust so your boat makes that cool Turbo whine?
LOL J/K

G the new motor lists @ 325kg = 715 lbs

Think they'll sell any for that much extra cost?? Were it a $3200, I bet they'd be surprised about how many people would be interested in it...

22k for the diesel engine?? I don't get it.

I really doubt diesel or gas is any better any worse for the lake. Both make particulates, but perhaps the diesel makes more.

Do you have to sit and let the thing warm up for a minute everytime you start it like a truck. If so that would get pretty old as much as you start a boat.

I think it is a cool idea but at that price I can not see it selling very well.

I heisted this from a MC press release -
"At the same time, the TDI 225-6 uses variable turbo charging and an extremely fast electronic management to offer even more spontaneous acceleration than gasoline engines of supposedly higher rating – eliminating any noticeable trace of previously known “turbo lag”.

Users of this new diesel option will, in comparison with the gasoline power options, enjoy very similar top speeds, but even stronger acceleration especially at lower speeds.

This advantage is accompanied with a cut in average fuel consumption of at least 50% in typical ski boat use, which is in most countries further enhanced by the price advantage of diesel fuel against gasoline.

Finally, the sophisticated engine management system qualifies all Volkswagen Marine engines as stringent “Non Smokers”. Their emission standards are so advanced that they are welcome on any skiing waters in the world, as long as combustion engines are allowed there at all."

So it sounds like gas savings and lower emissions w/o a performance decrease are the main goals of this option.

unless you go somewhere where there are 50 foot yachts, I think you are going to have a hard time finding Diesel on the lake. Who wants to take the boat out and bring it to the gas station mid day. I know I wouldn't. I think it is a cool idea but it will take a while.

at 50% fuel savings, I would not need to pull the boat mid day.

Every diesel I have seen has a lowwwww redline. How other than prop pitch will this thing keep up in top speed? The torque of a diesel could run a pretty silly (speed)pitch and still pull out of the hole like a mule. Given more prop pitch (to mantain top speed) wouldn't cavitation be severely worse out of the hole?


I'm in no way a prop engineer but I'm aware of basic principles... Maybe they add some sort of transmission for slower speed or higher speed possibly a CVT like VW have in cars and to not have the sudden jerk of a standard shift? In this case I would suppose it could quantify some of the cost but adding a tranny to a gas engine would effectively get the same advantages I would think or could get away with less motor more gear in non-diesel boat as well? Heck I often times think cruising across the lake when its smooth 3500rpm @ 30-something mph is silly but it IS a wakeboat.

It would make it a lot easier to transport fuel to the dock and fill up if I ran diesel.

And I bet you could run off-road diesel for awhile and get away with it. I'm not certain the restrictions of off-road diesel in marine application.

There would be no problem w/ it at all. You could run Red all day long and they couldn't do a thing to you.

In Europe however, they are trying to pass a law, or maybe already have, to make it illegal. Prob. not long before you see it here.


As far as finding diesel on the lakes.... every lake I go to here has diesel.

Want to save on fuel costs today? Check into Toyota Epic. It has the Lexus V-8 used in the LS sedan. Compared to other inboard engines, this one sips gas and has top notch quality and reliability. Here are the specs...

VT 300i Specifications:
* Horsepower 300 hp 6,000 rpms
* Maximum torque 310 lb.-ft. 4,200 rpms
* Cylinder block & head aluminum alloy
* Weight (with/without transmission) 628 lbs./566 lbs. without fluids
* Engine layout V 90/8 cylinders
* Valve mechanism 32 valve twin DOHC, belt & gear driven
* Exhaust manifolds Stainless steel
* Displacement 4.0-liters
* Power to weight ratio 0.53 lbs. per horsepower

For my first 8 hours of use this season, I only used 20 gallons for a mix of towing, cruising, some WOT and some 5 mph no wake. Even I was amazed by this. I'm going to track this a bit more, but on the Toyota Epic website, others post about high fuel economy that is superior to pretty much anything out there. www.epicmarine.com.

But, I have to say that this engine looks interesting. I don't think I could smell diesel fumes all day, though.

I own a toyota epic and LOVE IT. I spend the whole day on the lake boarding and idling, i almost never shut it off, and after 7 hours i have barely used 5 gallons of gas...

Michael, I don't buy it. 5 gallons in 7 hours doesn't seem possible. Especially when the guy a couple posts above you in the thread reports using 20 gallons in 8 hours. I don't think my boat could idle for 7 hours on 5 gallons of gas.

it gets better fuel effeciency than a 40 h.p. honda outboard. Seems like a stretch to me.

^^^^The reason that Lexus motor sips gas is because it doesn't have any power, look at those engine specs compared to most of the Indmar specs it's a joke. I wouldn't want to board behind an anemic motor like that. You wouldn't be able to add any wieght to that thing and still get on plane.

(Message edited by 05mobiuslsv on July 27, 2007)

(Message edited by 05mobiuslsv on July 27, 2007)

I believe this diesel probably has a much higher redline than the traditional heavy duty truck diesel. I have two volvo diesels in a 31 Tiara. They red line at 3900. The boat gets to cruise almost instantly with no cavitation. However, these high reving diesels don't run as long as their lower reving fathers. I think its a great idea but I'm not keen on a VW engine. Maybe a Yanmar would be better.

rpm difference will be addressed with a different trans gear ratio.

Red diesel. I'm buying one. that will save a tone on fuel.

http://www.mastercraft.com/index.php?znfAction=WorldApart&sub=power

NuBu - I board with a 350 Mag and the numbers are less than the Lexus. It pulls mine and a lot boats out of the water just fine.
Regardless, for the sake that diesel fumes will always make me think of Salmon fishing in Westport, WA, getting seasick, throwing up all down the side of the boat and watching seagulls eat it, only to throw up some more, I would not have a diesel in a board boat. I'll save that for the 30' plus.

I agree, I don't think diesel makes sense until you get over 30' with a larger beam boat where your pushing a lot of displacement. The mess, noise, smell, oil filters, fuel filters, turbo repairs, injectors, gallons of oil, and a decent mechanic. Forget it. I'll stick with gas for a small boat.

lol, show a freakin Hybrid & pay attention

Guys, these "marine diesels" have no smell. Their emissions are STRICT!!!! If your that worried about, you could always add a FAE. The sound on these particular motors is very similar to a throaty V8.

All I know is from now on Fatsac will forever be known as "Seagull Puke"

(Message edited by iagainsti on July 27, 2007)

ok, i like to post on sites where i dont get flamed for adding input. I go by how many gallons of gas i put in the boat. Example, went out last weekend and ran for 7 hours, tank was full when we went out. When we finished i filled it up and it took 5.2 gallons. And this boat is far from anemic. If you want a ride behind it bring yourself to lubbock texas and i will take you out. Dont knock it till you try it...

I'm no engine statistic jockey, but I can tell you that the Lexus engine has more than enough power. I've never had any complaints from any of my riders about lack of power, etc. In fact, what I typically get are compliments. It really is a great engine.

Indmar, of course, makes larger engines than the Lexus and many of those engines are in boats that are much larger than a Toyota Epic. No big deal there.

Anyhow, I did not realize that I was using 2.5 gallons per hour. This was less than I thought I was using and I was pleasantly surprised by the economy. To be honest, I think that other tanks of gas have burned slightly faster, but I wasn't measuring those. (Perhaps 1-3 GPH faster.)

Beyond my boat and some postings on the Epic site, I don't really have a frame of reference on how much gas inboards use. Does anyone know how many gallons per hour inboards generally use with typical mix of towing, cruising, WOT, 5 mph no wake, etc.? I've never seen it discussed here and I'm curious. What have you found?

P.S. Glad to see that fumes shouldn't be an issue with the diesel.

My boat uses between 6-7 gph on a typical day at the lake. 2.5 is great if that's what you're getting.

MC doesn't expect the US market to sell many diesels. My dealer said that there won't be many dealers that actually have any on the lot because of the high option price. The engine is targeting the european market.

The European market is screaming out for a diesel option. With so many cars being diesel's in Europe, there is absolutely no stigma attached to going for diesel power - in fact many people are benefiting from the lower running costs due to extended service periods, fantastic fuel consumption (as an example my audi does over 50mpg, kicks out 180bhp, all from a 1.9litre VW diesel engine).

I would jump at a diesel powered boat any day of the week but the price needs to be right, a diesel car costs on average £1500, or $3000, more than the petrol alternative, if mastercraft or others were offering a diesel option with the same cost adder then would be on to a winner!